Vehicles drivable by motor power and/or pedal power are known, for example, as electric bicycles, e.g. “pedelecs.” There are electric bicycles in which the electric drive system is disposed in the region of the bottom bracket (central motor concept). A rear wheel is then driven via a chain. A shifting device, for example a derailleur system or a hub gear system or the like, can be disposed on the rear wheel. A stepless hub gear system as described, for example, in US 2012/0309579 A1 is also known.
The shifting devices most often disposed on the rear wheel each have discontinuities between the individual gear ratios. A shifting device disposed on the bicycle, in particular an electric bicycle, can be controlled automatically. The two systems—the shifting device disposed on the rear wheel, and the electric drive system with motor assistance and driver input sensing—work sequentially and are not optimally matched to one another, especially in a context of automatically regulated shifting devices and when discontinuities exist between the gear ratios. The high weight in particular of hub gear systems on the rear wheel does not represent an optimum weight distribution in terms of handling, suspension, and riding dynamics. In addition, removal and installation of the rear wheel having a shifting device is often very complex and cost-intensive.